legal chaos looms in eastern cape
19 June 2008

The action, which was launched by lawyers in various parts of the province, could have serious implications for the Eastern Cape which already has a huge backlog of court cases.  The lawyers said they decided on the action following government’s failure to align their salaries with those of other legal practitioners, especially those working for the National Prosecution Authority (NPA) and Department of Justice.

They claimed that since last year national government has been making promises to bring their salary scales in line with those of state lawyers.  “We have the same training and qualifications. We also render the same services, there should be no difference in our salaries,” said one lawyer, who asked not to be named.

They also claimed that the source an entry level Legal Aid Boards’ lawyer earns about R82 000 per annum while their counterparts from the NPA and Department of Justice were paid anything between R131 000 and R200 000 per annum.

Legal Aid Board chief operations officer Jerry Makokoane sent a strongly-worded memo warning them about the dangers of taking part in the “illegal go-slow action and orchestrated stay away action”.  He threatened that the board reserved the right to institute disciplinary action against any employee who has or will participate in the unprotected action.

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